


Don't Joke Like That!

by coolasdicks



Category: Rooster Teeth/Achievement Hunter RPF
Genre: Fluff, Full on relationship by end, M/M, Pre-Relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-02-10
Updated: 2014-02-10
Packaged: 2018-01-11 21:32:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,313
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1178155
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/coolasdicks/pseuds/coolasdicks
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Prompt Fill:</p>
<p>"AH OT6- Everyone is in the relationship but Michael. They’re trying so hard to get him to join, but he honestly thinks that the entire thing is a joke. Eventually they convince him that the five of them are actually together and get him to join them, but he gets really embarrassed about thinking their relationship was a joke. ~Davieboi from JackinthatPattillo"</p>
            </blockquote>





	Don't Joke Like That!

When Geoff sat Michael down, he’d feared that he was going to get scolded for falling behind in his Full Play uploads. Michael had been too busy thinking up excuses and validations for his behavior to notice his boss looking extremely apprehensive as he took a seat across from the redhead.

“Michael,” Geoff said slowly. “We have something to discuss.”

“Alright, alright,” Michael said, holding up his hands. “If this is about the Full Play situation, I can totally explain –”

“No, no, it’s not about that,” Geoff said quickly, dismissing him immediately. Michael blinked in surprise.

“Oh,” he said, leaning back in the chair. “Then what’s on your mind, Geoffers?”

“As you know,” Geoff started nervously. “Rooster Teeth is a very relaxed working environment. We have no company policies concerning relationships between the staff –”

Michael sat up. “Are you fucking Jack?” he guessed excitedly. Watching Geoff’s cheeks flush pink, he jumped up and yelled in victory. “I fucking  _told_  Lindsay she was wrong!”

“Michael!” Geoff hissed, pulling the young man back into his chair by his wrist.

“Sorry, sorry,” Michael said with a cocky grin. He leaned back in his chair, propping his foot up on his knee, giving Geoff a smirk. “Go on, Mr. Pattillo.”

“Shut up,” Geoff said, rolling his eyes in exasperation. “There’s more.”

“Oh no,” Michael gasped dramatically. “Are you pregnant?”

Geoff reached forward to thwap him on the back of the head, looking annoyed. “I’m serious,” he said, frustrated. Michael was making this as hard as possible. Deciding to just be as blunt as possible, Geoff said, “Have you ever heard of a polyamorous relationship?”

Michael looked confused, but judging from the sudden blush making its way up his neck, he definitely knew what it meant. After a long pause of Michael studying him suspiciously, the redhead finally said, “Yeah, it’s where a bunch of people fuck each other, right?”

“No,” Geoff said. “Well, sometimes. That’s an orgy. I mean a relationship.”

“A threesome but with feelings?”

Geoff rolled his eyes. “Sorta,” he said. “But… it’s not always… just three people.”

Michael grinned, but he looked a little pale. Geoff was starting to worry – Michael obviously did not understand what he was getting at, but was beginning to assume something completely different. “That’s kinky,” Michael said, clearly uncomfortable.

Geoff bit his lip.

Awkward. So awkward.

_Just come out and say it, Geoffery, just say it –_

“Me, Jack, Ray, Gavin, and Ryan are all in a relationship.”

Michael stared at him dumbly.

“Together,” Geoff added as an afterthought.

“What?” Michael said blankly, smiling slowly as if ready for Geoff to rebuff his statement as say ‘Just kidding!’, but when no such exclamation came, he said, “You… all of you…”

“Yeah.”

Michael felt something in his heart twinge. “You’re joking,” he said with a sly grin, ignoring the odd feeling in his chest. He started laughing boisterously, tears springing to his eyes in mirth. He leaned over, gasping for breath and clutching his stomach.

Geoff glared at him, feeling heat rise to his face. Michael wiped a tear away and continued to giggle. “Good joke, Geoff, you actually had me  _really_  worried for a second there.”

Michael chuckled, standing up from the chair. He clapped Geoff on the back roughly, walking towards the door. “I don’t know what’s so funny about imagining you in that relationship,” Michael said thoughtfully as he went to close the door. “I guess it’s the idea of you having to put up with all of us.”

Geoff blinked at the closed door.

Us?

—-

Michael was ambushed by Gavin regarding the subject only three days later.

Gavin often insisted on staying in the room while Michael did his Rage Quit, much to Michael’s irritation. The Brit would watch him yell and scream at the game, letting out incessant giggles throughout the recording without fail, and bursting into full-blown laughter when Michael’s voice cracked or when his character had a particularly brutal death on screen.

That Thursday was no different. Everyone else tended to avoid the Achievement Hunter office during his Rage Quit, and usually there wasn’t many in the office anyway. He purposefully did them after hours as to not disrupt any important calls should his loud voice make it far enough through the building.

Gavin sat in his normal chair as Michael stood from his desk, feeling more into the recording than when he sat. Usually Gavin at least tried to work on something else, but now he was just facing his chair towards Michael and giving him his full attention. Michael couldn’t help but find it at least a  _little_  cute. Gavin kept giggling and squeaking whenever Michael threw his hands in the air at what was definitely an unfair death.

The fourth time this happened, Michael side-eyed Gavin with a grin. “Enjoying the show, Gav?”

Gavin shrugged, smiling. “Sure am,” he said. “Not as good as the ones we do together, boy,” he added.

Michael laughed. “Maybe,” he allowed before turning back to his monitor. Glancing at the capture on his computer, he noted the time. “Eh,” he shrugged, taking off his headphones. “Should be long enough. Wanna grab some bevs, Gav?”

“Actually, Michael,” Gavin said, reclining in his chair. “I wanted to talk to you about something.”

Michael gave him a funny look. “Yeah?”

“Yeah,” Gavin said, nodding to himself. He looked determined.

Michael laughed as he put away his mic. “Alright, well then, go for it.”

Gavin fiddled with the hem of his jeans nervously. “Well, you know how Geoff… talked to you a few days ago.”

Michael cocked his head in confusion. “Talked to me? No, I – oh! You mean him ‘confessing’ to me about you guys being in a relationship? A little fucking dumb, honestly, for a joke. It wasn’t even believable.”

Gavin stared at him. “It’s believable,” he said defensively.

Michael snorted, turning off his monitor and computer before wheeling in his chair to face Gavin. “You, Ray, Geoff, Ryan, and Jack – five guys who work together, all in a relationship.” He rolled his eyes. “Very realistic.”

Gavin frowned. “You’re being narrow-minded. What, you think five guys or more can’t be in a happy, healthy, consensual relationship?”

Michael stopped laughing at the accusation. “I’m very open-minded,” he told him. “I think six guys can definitely be in a relationship. I just don’t think  _you all_  could.”

“We get along and all!” Gavin cried, clearly agitated. “We rarely have  _actual_  fights, don’t you think?”

Michael rolled his eyes and kicked Gavin’s chair a bit. “Yeah, except for when we do.” He playfully pushed Gavin away. “I don’t know why you’re trying so hard to convince me of this,” he said, shaking his head and smiling. “It’s not a very good prank.”

“It’s not a prank, Michael!” Gavin said hotly, kicking Michael’s chair back a little harder than necessary. “Geoff was being serious!”

“Why are you trying so hard to convince me?” Michael said, truly bewildered. “Why aren’t you trying to fool Kara or Barbara; someone who might actually believe you?”

Gavin opened his mouth and floundered for a few long seconds before snapping it shut. His eyes blazed. “Stop being so pig-headed,” he snapped, standing up from his chair.

Michael stared at him in confusion. “Why are you getting so riled up?” he asked. “I mean – I believed part of it. I was pretty damn sure Geoff and Jack were getting it on, but now I’m not so sure. You guys are starting to weird me out.”

Gavin groaned and pulled at his hair with both hands. “You’re unbelievably thick,” he told Michael as he walked in a circle around the room.

Michael watched with his mouth hanging open as Gavin stormed out, slamming the door behind him.

“He’s not actually mad, is he?”

—-

Gavin’s baffling behavior was resolved the next morning by the Brit just avoiding him. It irked Michael slightly, but he tried not to let it get to him. He didn’t have the time or patience to deal with Gavin’s stupid, failed pranks. If the idiot wanted to act like a baby, then it didn’t bother Michael.

Geoff, on the other hand, was quick to cover for the Brit, spouting something about working with the Podcast crew today; he simply ignored the fact that it was Friday when Michael pointed it out. The redhead rolled his eyes and just gave up, perfectly okay with the absence of Gavin in today’s Things to Do.

He’d noticed it out of the corner of his eye while recording.

It was small, barely conceivable to Michael even while wearing the glasses. Honestly, he didn’t even know how he caught it, but when he did, in fact, realize that out of the corner of his eye, Ryan had just kissed Ray on the mouth, he physically jolted and let out a surprised yelp.

“What the hell was that!” he proclaimed, fumbling with his control. WASTED came up on his screen, but he was already spinning his chair to look at Ray, who was red-faced.

“I – Geoff said –” Michael sputtered.

“Geoff was serious,” was all Ray managed, turning back to his computer after sharing a glance with Ryan.

Michael gaped at him for a solid thirty seconds before glancing at Ryan too. The blonde was watching him with a smirk. “What?” he snapped, his cheeks burning as he scooted closer to his desk and picked up his controller.

“You seem a little high strung,” Ryan answered. He stepped closer to the back of Michael’s chair, hands lightly resting on Michael’s shoulders. Tensing, the redhead stared at his screen as his character respawned. Ryan’s hands were warm and big on his neck as he massaged the tight muscles, kneading and rubbing just right. Michael shivered in pleasure.

Michael’s breath caught in his throat whenever Ryan’s fingers slid, accidentally or not, into the neck hole of his shirt, his fingers calloused and oddly arousing against his bare skin. Ryan leaned down, fingers pausing in their ministrations as he propped his chin on Michael’s shoulder.

“Starting to believe us yet?” Ryan breathed, the sensation of moist air hitting Michael’s ear making him shudder.

Michael pushed away from his desk and stood up in a flurry of movement, knocking Ryan’s smarmy, stupid hands away and turning around to glare at the older man, a blush high on his cheeks.

“No,” Michael said stubbornly. “There is no fucking way –”

Ryan wordlessly stepped closer, crowding Michael against his desk and effectively cutting the younger’s rant off before it even began. Acutely aware that Ryan’s hips were pressed tight against his, he sealed his mouth shut and met Ryan’s eyes in an act of defiance, a sudden game of gay chicken initiated.

Everyone else in the office was watching with bated breath. Geoff would be the first to admit that he was getting a little turned on watching Ryan tower over Michael so dominatingly, the stand-off buzzing with sexual tension. Michael stared back challengingly, but the blush on his face lessened the severity. Geoff could see his hands gripping the desk behind him as Ryan continued to edge closer. They were pressed flush against one another in no time, Michael looking supremely uncomfortable.

“Isn’t gonna work,” Michael said. Despite his rather panicked expression, his voice was loud and cocky. “I still don’t believe you.”

Ryan stared at him, disbelief written on his face. He stepped away, allowing Michael to take a deep gulp of fresh air, his body tingling where it had been touching Ryan’s.

Taking a moment to deliberate, Ryan strode over to Geoff and without hesitating, leaned down to connect their lips. Michael’s eyes widened at the stimulating sight, following the movement of the kiss hungrily with his eyes and letting out a shuttering breath when he saw a flash of tongue exchanged.

It probably didn’t last as long as Michael thought it did, but it felt like he spent an eternity watching his boss make out with his coworker. It was a passionate sight, the two moving in synchrony as if they’d done this hundreds of times, eyes closed and mouths opened, Geoff’s arms loosely hanging around the blonde’s neck as Ryan pressed forward, his hands supporting his weight on the armrests.

“What the hell,” Gavin said, who’d entered the room while the two were making out. Michael hadn’t even noticed his entrance.

“What the hell,” Michael parroted back weakly when the two finally broke apart, Geoff giving a lopsided smirk as he smacked his lips.

Michael looked Geoff. “You… you weren’t kidding.”

“Not in the slightest.”

Michael stared helplessly at them, his gaze switching between the five men sitting in front of him. Each one held an expression of hopefulness, for what Michael wasn’t sure. He suddenly felt embarrassed.

“I… I’m fine with it and all,” he said awkwardly, trying to tell them what he thought they wanted to hear. In truth, his feelings were a little hurt out of purely selfish reasons. Somehow, everyone had fallen in love but him. And Michael had to admit, he found his coworkers very… very attractive. He stared at the wall as jealousy burnt his veins.

When silence was his answer, Michael continued to blurt, “Like, you know I’m not a homophobe or anything, I think guys are fine too, but I’m also not a polyphobe if that exists, I totally believe that six – er, ah, five guys can all be happy and shit together. I wasn’t sure if you knew that since it’s never been brought up – I can’t believe no one told me, or that I didn’t fucking see it –”

“Michael, shut up,” Ray said earnestly, but there was no bite to his tone. He was sharing a knowing look with Geoff, both debating on how to proceed.

“We want to talk about this as adults for a second,” Ray said, rising and grabbing Michael’s hand, leading him to back to his chair. Michael sat down, looking anxious.

“Why are you so nervous, Michael?” Gavin asked teasingly, giving Jack a dirty look when the bearded man tapped him sharply on the head. He rubbed the sore spot sourly but closed his mouth.

“Adults, Gavin,” Geoff reminded him before turning back to Michael, fingers steepled in front of him in concentration. “Michael. We… well, to be frank, we’re interested in you that way, too.” Michael heart leapt. “All of us are – we talked about it, a lot. So if you want to… you know, be boyfriends or whatever… we’d be beyond happy.”

Michael was frozen, blank stare setting the tattooed man on edge. Geoff continued hastily, already beginning to backtrack. “But if you don’t - that’s fine, we’ll just act like it never happened. If you’re uncomfortable, we can just - pretend, I guess, that we’re all not in a relationship. We can keep things completely professional, if that’s what you want.”

Michael blinked at the offer, surprised everyone looked so damn skittish. They were all on the edge of their seat as they waited for him to respond.

“I - uh,” Michael stammered, feeling his cheeks warm. His heart pounded in excitement, happiness making him lightheaded.

The guys were still waiting for an answer. Gavin and Ray were sharing frightened glances, while Jack, Ryan and Geoff just stared intently at the redhead, watching his facial expressions closely. At any sign of genuine discomfort, they were ready to abort completely, afraid to drive Michael away. They didn’t want to lose his friendship, even if they couldn’t have his romantic commitment.

“Christ - say something, Michael, anything!” Gavin burst out, unable to stand the quiet any longer. Michael jumped at the outburst, managing to drag in a breath.

“Yes, yes, I’m interested!”

It was hard to say, but it was worth it.

Geoff and Ryan sighed in blissful relief, elation quick to flood their brains. Gavin tackled him in his chair, nearly knocking him over, while Jack wrapped both of them in a tight bear hug, lifting the duo off the floor in a tight squeeze. Ray cheered in the background, a huge, shit-eating grin nearly splitting his face in two.

“That wasn’t so hard, was it?” Ryan chuckled as Jack set them down, Gavin dramatically gasping in mouthfuls of air, Jack laughing and patting him roughly on the back. Michael wavered on his feet, feeling dizzy from both the slight lack of air and the ecstasy coursing through his body. His lips were spread in a smile that he couldn’t beat down.

Gavin hugged him, laying his head on his chest. “And you thought it was a joke,” he said, condescendingly.

Michael narrowed his eyes at them, cheeks red. “This still isn’t some elaborate ruse, right?” he asked, sounding playful. His palms were sweaty, however, with nerves. “I’m not going to walk out of here to a bunch a cameras and microphones?”

Geoff shook his head at him, smiling. He rose from his chair and stepped closer, wrapping an arm around Michael’s waist and pulling him closer. Their chests bumped, Michael’s unmoving as he held his breath. Geoff tilted his chin up with a gentle finger and connected their mouths in a sweet, tender motion, the feel of Geoff’s soft lips against his own sending pleasurable flurries into Michael’s heart. He returned the kiss with passion, trying to communicate his contentment through their connection. They broke apart after a few long seconds, both men relishing the taste of the other on his lips.

“Not fair!” Gavin wailed. “I haven’t got to kiss him yet!”

Michael giggled. His chest felt like it was filled with air.

Geoff sighed, looking at his watch unhappily. “It’s too early for us to leave,” he said, pouting. “But we’re definitely celebrating tonight.”

Everyone nodded, delighted.

They had no choice but to sit back down for work, recording a Let’s Play in a stupid arcade game, their spirits high, but they didn’t mention their newly founded relationship in the video.

Michael was surprised throughout the rest of the day with unexpected kisses from each of the boys, each one special in their own way, and all delicious. Geoff demanded that they all join him at his house for a small party, forcing Ray to sit on Jack’s lap the ride there. Neither man was all that upset at the seating arrangement.

They stumbled inside drunkenly, though alcohol had not touched a single one’s lips. They pushed and tripped each other up the porch steps, laughing and occasionally laying a wet, fat smooch on each other. Gavin got a bit carried away and took to shoving Michael against the living room wall, roughly kissing him and biting his neck.

“Hey – hey!” Geoff shouted good-naturedly from the kitchen. “We still have to celebrate, and not like that!”

Gavin backed off, but not before delivering a large hickey to the redhead’s neck.

Geoff brought them all beers, save for Ray, who was brought a coke, and they all sat down in the living room, joking and teasing one another. Michael felt like he was floating through the night; he couldn’t believe this was happening.

As if reading his mind, Jack let out an incredulous chuckle. “I can’t believe you thought it was a joke.”

Michael rolled his eyes, but he was embarrassed. “You have to admit that it’s at least a  _little_ fucking hard to believe.”

“I think he was just scared he was gonna be left out,” Gavin sniggered. The rest of the guys laughed as Michael flushed. Groaning, he covered his burning face with his arm, but he was sporting a goofy grin.

“We won’t leave you out, Michael,” Ray whispered to him later that night, when everyone else had drifted off to sleep in various places, the majority of the men curled up on the couches.

Michael slipped his hand into his boyfriend’s feeling Ray squeeze his palm in reassurance.

“I know, Ray,” Michael breathed happily. “Thanks.”


End file.
